2019 Prospect Rankings: Third Base

Our prospect rankings continue this week with a stop at the hot corner. Unfortunately, due to circumstances beyond his control, Paul Hartman had to step away from our rankings. But fear not. Andy Germani, the man who has penned the minor league report for years now, has you covered.

In addition to his rankings, a number of questions were posed to give you an idea of who he is targeting and avoiding, and why. While these rankings are primarily for those of you in keeper and dynasty leagues, some of the players could make a potential impact in 2019.

Players are ranked using their primary position, so those that played multiple positions will not be duplicated elsewhere in the rankings.

Rank

Player

Rank

Player

Rank

Player

1

Vladimir Guerrero, Jr.

10

Ryan Mountcastle

19

Miguel Vargas

2

Austin Riley

11

Bobby Dalbec

20

Lucas Erceg

3

Jonathan India

12

Michael Chavis

21

Sherten Apostel

4

Nolan Jones

13

Ke’Bryan Hayes

22

Jonathan Ornelas

5

Nolan Gorman

14

Malcom Nunez

22

Kevin Cron

6

Kevin Maitan

15

Edwin Rios

23

Abraham Toro

7

Colton Welker

16

Hudson Potts

24

Jean Carlos Encarnacion

8

Alec Bohm

17

Mark Vientos

25

Drew Ellis

9

Elehuris Montero

18

Jake Burger

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Who is your favorite prospect to break out in 2019?

He already broke out last year, but I am looking at Nolan Jones to be one of the big jumpers in 2019. His power showed in his first full season when he hit 19 homers in 120 games. There is a very good chance Jones and Jonathan India are battling for my top 3B spot this time next year.

What prospect (if any) could make a surprising Contribution to fantasy teams in 2019?

The Pirates won’t waste his service time because they have “options” at third, but I could see Ke’Bryan Hayes coming up and having a solid year. It is a hard pick here because there is the obvious Vlad Jr. pick and then not a lot else. Hayes only has to get around Kang and Moran, which shouldn’t be hard, but I don’t see the Pirates burning service time if they have those guys there already.

What lesser-known prospect should fantasy owners put on their radars now?

In his first full season in the US, Elehuris Montero hit .315/.371/.504 with 16 homers and only struck out 19% of the time. He has plus power and a hit tool good enough to let that power play. Montero was a candidate for my breakout prospect, but he feels better served here.

What prospect can you see slipping down the rankings owners may want to avoid/trade?

It was a really, really short sample, but Alex Bohm’s homerless (40 game) 2018 season has to be of some concern. For an advanced college bat you want to see more when they are playing low-A. I wouldn’t be trading him away now, it is probably more of a time to buy, but if he comes out of this season with similar struggles it might be too late to sell.

I am a lifelong Pittsburgh sports fan and a graduate from Penn State. Baseball was my first love and I still play to this day in an adult baseball league. I always love helping people with their questions on Twitter so feel free to follow me and ask questions.